Would you ever start a business?

I would if the right opportunity presented itself. Robert Kiyosaki made lots of money telling people how to make money. Whether or not the people he told how to make money actually made any money remains to be seen.

nlphypno80 said:

That's part of the problem. Having the knowledge means nothing if you are not willing to go out and apply that knowledge. They say that knowledge is power. That's not true.

It's knowledge applied that equals power.

Click to expand...

Right, and a little knowledge can be a dangerous thing.

There are some contradictions in starting a business:

If you work for the man, the nature of capitalism is that you will be paid less than your labour is worth.

If you start a business and employ someone you will be paying them less than they have earn'd.

If someone says to you they got rich through hard work - the question is who's hard work made them rich.

If the business fails the owner will blame other people for the failure but if it succeeds then they take the glory themselves.

If you are going to benefit by an injustice is it better to acknowledge to yourself that you are doing so, or delude yourself by denying it?

In this market, real estate is a decent investment if you want to become self employed. Buy a few duplexes or houses with mortgages of about 600-700/mo in an area where rent is typically 900-1100/mo or higher.

If you have the fortitude to manage the properties yourself (dealing with terrible tenants, maintenance, etc.) then you might actually net a bit of a profit while the renters are essentially building your equity for you. After 10/15 years you can either sell the property for (hopefully) an appreciation or (if the market is down at the time) continue to rent it out for tidy profit.

Let's say the house is 100k and you rent it for $1000/mo. Annualized that a 12% return on investment (not counting insurance, taxes, maintenance, or vacancy).

But it's probably safer than the stock market...

This question is asked a lot in society in general, basically "what can I do to make money?" To begin with, I think it's the wrong question, but the one that almost everyone asks. For jobs and businesses alike, I think one should submit their idea to what I call "The Money Test," which isn't exactly what it may seem. If your boss came to you tomorrow and said "we've had budget cuts and for the next six months, we're going to staff with volunteers only. That means we won't be able to pay you". Would you still do your current job? Assume for a moment that you had adequate savings and working six months for free would not create a hardship, would you do it? In other words, what's that one thing you would be willing to get up and do every day, even if it paid no money whatsoever. Maybe there's a possibility that money will come in the future. But for now is there something that's still worth while? Then, that's what you should do. First make sure passions align with Christ, then follow your passions and you will never be poor.

Well to start a business is all when you are prepared and have the complete knowledge on how you will handle the business. How to handle finances, work LOAD , MAN POWER, AND DEALS.

Also to know the Tax Saving Schemes is very important.

We are missing one important element.

As a Pastor, Real Estate Investor and Business Owner I get to experience the joy and responsibility of helping my employees provide for their families.

If it wasn't for us business people who would?

Certainly not the Government we business people have to keep them going also.

The reason I started a business is not only to make money, it was for me to become financially independent.

I didn't want to depend on my JOB for the rest of my life to help me survive. It was too risky.

I wanted to LEARN how to make money for MYSELF so I don't have to rely on anyone.

Yes!!!!! I just wish i knew how....

This is the best way to go as long as you did your market research right and built a good system to automate it as much as you can.

Sunganani said:

This is the best way to go as long as you did your market research right and built a good system to automate it as much as you can.

Click to expand...

Passive income is the key.

Create a system that generates cash for you while you are asleep.

If you stop working for The Man, then your clients become The Man. Your business is the hovering boss that never sleeps. You are your own guilt-driver. And as said above, you become the one trying to make money by saving money, often at others' expense.

If you work for the man, the nature of capitalism is that you will be paid less than your labour is worth.

If you start a business and employ someone you will be paying them less than they have earn'd.

If someone says to you they got rich through hard work - the question is who's hard work made them rich. ...

If you are going to benefit by an injustice is it better to acknowledge to yourself that you are doing so, or delude yourself by denying it?

Click to expand...

Not all methods of profit take advantage of people so directly, but it does weigh heavier when we are the only ones accountable for these decisions.

I have been involved in several business start-ups, and while there's loads of creative freedom, there are also times when you don't want to spend any more mental energy shoring it up. It's nice to have the momentum of other people's support; a pre-established tech division that's already superb; a client base that already trusts the company; a marketing team that pushes beyond where you would go yourself.

There's nothing like synergy. And if you're not one to hire other people for their expertise, then the synergy is You and your pinkie finger. It's a lot of mental work -- I'm not talking about intelligence, but decision-making where you always absorb the risks. Gumption that keeps on going daily, while employees and customers see you as the scapegoat, the Man, the one that can afford loss and theft, the one to blame and sue for negligence.

It's a great ideal, and I would continue to do it, but it's not the easy way out.

Employer support with heath care, life insurance, retirement plans, office equipment and space, paid sick leave, disability and workers' comp expenses, tax accountant expenses ... that's a nicer deal than we give employers credit for.

While the reasons you put forth to starting a business are true and have been used by many motivational speakers, in reality, there is much more to starting and running a successful business. This is why many start but only a few actually turn profitable.

You must know what kind of business you can run, what opportunities are available for you to harness, and how to convert whatever you have into a profitable business.

In reality, the motivational cliché "if I can do it, you too can" is not actually true. This is why our programs are focused on going beyond general motivation, to helping Christians with practical and personalized road-maps on starting or expanding their business and finding their best-fit vocations.

Drop me a private message if you need more info.

Having a business can, in fact, bring in quite a bit of money. However, owning a business entails quite a bit of risk. And despite what others may say, in the end you may still end up working for someone.

Particularly in business, it takes money to make money. One needs to consider the operational costs of the business such as income (salary) needed to sustain oneself or family, the bills that need to be paid (electricity, water, internet, tv, phone, websites, etc.), the rent if renting a space, insurance, lawyers fees, accountant fees, merchant fees if accepting debit/credit cards, advertisement, etc. Not to mention one needs to figure out the variable costs including the cost of re-sale products, and the cost of services (work supplies, gas, office supplies, etc.). With just some of these costs, one can see that there is much to be paid that can quickly dip into the gross income. Last but not least, if one doesn’t have money to start, then a loan may be needed. The loan requires monthly payments with interest that can significantly dip into profits.

More than likely, starting a business requires a loan since many do not have a significant amount of capital or money at their disposal. Sometimes applying for a loan requires the individual to put their personal assets (house, car, etc.) as collateral for the loan. Therefore, if the individual ceases to make payments, the loan agency or bank can repossess the collateral. These loans can be quite large. Usually, business owners need at least 6 months salary plus the cost of the startup. Businesses usually won’t make any money during the first 3-6 months because nobody is aware of the business.

Many dream of getting their businesses like Google, Apple or Microsoft. Many think that large companies such as Google, Apple, and Microsoft are owned by the CEO that runs the organization. Unfortunately, that is not the case. If you’ve seen the show Shark Tank, you’ll notice that many of the small business owners are unwilling or very hesitant to give up a significant share of their business in exchange for money. The reason is because any person that owns more than 50% of the shares owns or runs the company. The business owners that previously had more than 50% of the share may have less than 50% after receiving the funding. Therefore, their ideas will need to be approved by all parties including the agent that provided the money.

Public companies such as Google, Apple and Microsoft sell shares in exchange for money to help fund the companies. The companies are owned by shareholders; and meetings that determine the future of the organization include shareholders that have the most shares. The CEO acts as the “manager” running the business in the best interest of the “owners,” or shareholders. Yes, CEOs make quite a bit of money, but they do not usually own the organization. They still work for someone.

Starting your own business is not easy. One will work more hours than the regular 8-hour 9-5 job. On top of that, there will be many cases where the small business owner will be trying to survive to get to the next month. One must be willing to do all of this hard work and risk-taking just for the opportunity to make it big. Of course, it isn’t impossible. There are many business owners that are successful. But then again, there are even many more business that are unsuccessful.

If making money was easy, then everyone would be rich. However, this isn’t the case.

From a Christian standpoint, one needs to first find God’s vocation for the individual before starting a business. This will help lay a solid foundation for the business on Christ’s teachings and principles. There are many things stacked against business owners when they first start. However, God is all powerful, all knowing, and is the provider of all our needed resources. One needs to be sure that starting a business first starts with God. With faith in God, all things are possible, including business… just be prepared for the hard work ahead.

Yes --- I would like to start up an Ebay business. Meaning, listing items for people on a daily basis. I am currently doing that, but eh....

I want to do that but also own a store front where people can come in, give me their items and choose to either sell me their items, or, let me list it for them so we can both make money.

If they sell me their items, I can sell their items on Ebay/Craigslist or in the store after researching said items first to see if they're worth anything.

Thats my idea anyways.... I LOVE listing stuff on ebay for myself and friends. Would just love to do it on a full time basis, not just part time but still trying to work things out.

Started a fun and inspiring clothing company here! https://twitter.com/BeyondThePinkT